Captiva
by FairyScales
Summary: Watch as an American transfer student steps up in the fight with Voldemort. Unknowingly joining the biggest battle the wizarding world has ever seen. Will her blunt honesty, possible Seer powers, and complete lack of self preservation fail her or give her a bigger advantage? Marauders, OC, Language, Possible sexual content.


What will I miss the most? The suns warmth beating down and feeling it on my skin? The sound of the sea in my ears and the spray of salt water against my face? The feeling of my toes relaxing on the warm sand? The giant thunderstorms? I'm not really sure…I don't want to leave, not that I particularly loved Salem academy or anything but the thought of a new school was shockingly upsetting. I didn't know anyone, I have never even been to the damn country before! But I suppose it was my own fault, I shouldn't have picked a fight, but I did, and now I'm going to pay for it. Hogwarts? Hogwarts, what kind of a name is Hogwarts anyway? It sounds…warty. That's just gross. I sighed and instead of dwelling on those thoughts I took a look around, it was 10:30, and I was in a muggle train station called "Kings Cross" I stared at my trunk, Fiori glowered at me unblinkingly from inside her cage, she hated being caged. Her fur was on end making her seem like a miniature tiger. The Kneazle just stared at me until finally I looked away. I stepped through the barrier between platforms nine and ten to be greeted with wizarding children saying goodbyes and loading their trunks into the luggage compartment. I turned to look at my mother and father, startled to find they were staring at me already.

"What? Why are you looking at me like that?" I bit out harshly.

"Nothing dear, just try to make some friends ok? And just…don't get into any more fights ok?" My mom's concerned voice washed over me and some parts of me were happy to know she was as concerned as I was but at the same time I couldn't help but whine.

"Oh come on it was one time! It's not like I have been in millions of fights! I'm not even a violent person normally." I was sick of my parents looking at me like I was some sort of ticking time bomb, you get into one small fight and suddenly you're a complete delinquent!

"Darling? You broke his nose, wrist and you cracked a couple of his ribs, not to mention the bruises and cuts you left him with, and I was very pleased that you protected and stood up for that girl but you cannot make fighting a habit. Save your skills for when they are truly necessary, I know that boy deserved what you gave him but for now just try to keep out of trouble, make some friends and don't get off on the wrong foot with your new classmates alright?" My father, always the voice of reason, and unfortunately always right.

"Fine, I will try to stay out of trouble." My grumble was soft but heard by my parents and they smiled at me, my father took me into a hug and my mother kissed my cheek softly as I slowly boarded the train and paced the unending hall way until I found a somewhat empty compartment, a skinny and kind of gangly boy with sandy blond hair who was sitting in there with a book in his lap, I smirked, good a nice and quiet compartment, just what I wanted.

"Hello? May I sit here?" I gestured to his compartment and he seemed to jump at my words and his head snapped up, amber met sea blue. He looked quite shocked and on closer inspection I noticed thin scars on his pale face. His face morphed from shock and into friendliness.

"Yes of course, forgive me but I'm not sure I have ever seen you at Hogwarts before? What house are you in?" His curiosity was genuine and I sighed, time to let the cat out of the bag, literally and figuratively. I turned and unlocked Fiori's cage and she hopped right out and curled up next to my spot by the window and I turned back and sat down with a sheepish look on my face.

"Well I don't have a house yet and the reason for that is because I transferred here from America." I explained myself quickly to him hoping and praying he wouldn't ask questions.

"Oh well that certainly explains it! How rude of me, my name is Remus Lupin and welcome to Hogwarts!" He gave me a smile and offered me his hand, as soon as my hand met his I felt his aura and saw it, it was a light green color, on one hand it gave off this completely trustworthy, sweet, and kind vibe. But I could sense something deeper, something angry, caged, and dangerous. I tried to look completely natural as I took my hand back but before either of us could say anything else the compartment door swung open and in came three boys, two were wrestling, one had messy black hair and glasses which were currently askew from his little brawl, while the other had stormy grey eyes and curly dark hair, can I mention that he was completely buff too? Anyway both were very attractive. And didn't stop until they caught site of me, immediately they ceased there brawl and stood up straight.

"And just who is this lovely lady? Moony I haven't met this one how did you hide her from me?" Mister stormy eyes questioned lightly even though I could feel the intensity of the question, he wasn't sure who I was and that bothered him.

"Yeah Moony who is she?" I had completely forgotten about the third boy that had entered, pudgy little thing and looked to be about as smart as a coconut. Well the others were at least attractive.

"She's a transfer student and I believe she was about to introduce herself when you lot came barreling through the door." His voice was amused but also held a hint of seriousness too it, seriousness that meant you leave her alone or I will curse you. Why would he care, he doesn't even know me… All eyes in the compartment turned to me.

"Hello, my name is Nerrisa Archer but please just call me Rizz. I transferred here from America." My voice sounded awkward as they stared at me.

"Why did you transfer?" Glasses asked curiously.

"Oh well, um… it's kind of a long story, very boring you know, I don't want to bore you with it!" Real smooth Rizz, not suspicious AT ALL.

"No no I'm sure it's a great story!" Glasses said loudly with a shit eating grin that said 'you better tell us or I will annoy the shit out of you until you do!" I sighed…fuck.

"Well you see I kind of got into a fist fight with an upperclassmen and then I got expelled for it, even though this dude was a complete jackass." I summarized quickly, no way was I telling them everything, I don't even know them.

"Oh wow cool! Well anyway my name is James Potter, that one over there with the big ego is Sirius Black and that over there is Peter Pettigrew!" His grin seemed to be infectious because soon I was smiling as well. And so that's how my train ride went, chatting with them and before I knew it we had changed into our robes and where on our way to the carriages. Which I was a bit unsure about because when I asked what was pulling the carriage all they said was "the carriages pull themselves!" But that's so not true, fuckin creepy ass horse things, but I kept my mouth shut and was quite content to walk into the main hall when a somewhat wrinkly woman with a very tight bun and stern face stopped me.

"Miss Archer I presume?" She asked her voice was kind but demanded respect.

"Yes Ma'am?" I was always taught to use my manners and by god I would always use them when in the same room as this woman.

"You will be sorted right before the first years, come with me" with a quick yes ma'am we were off down the hall with Sirius calling after me. She led me to the front of a group of eleven year olds before turning to explain in detail what would be happening. "In a few moments these doors will open and you will join your other classmates in the great hall, but before choosing a seat you must be sorted into your houses, place the sorting hat on your head and it well tell you where you belong. Now your house will be like your family while you are here." And with that she turned on her heel and the two large doors swung open to reveal four long tables and one high table at the other end of the hall, She lead us down the middle and we all waited at the bottom step for our next instructions. I watched what seemed to be the headmaster stand up, he had purple robes on and a very long white beard, he seemed very grandfatherly. That must be Dumbledore, my parents had told me about him and had made me write a detailed letter about my indiscretion at Salem, to which he replyed with "Any young lady with such loyalty and strength is welcome at Hogwarts, assuming she will control her temper." He had even left a little smiley face at the bottom of his letter.

"We have a special case this year, Miss Nerrisa Archer from America has decided to transfer to Hogwarts this year, please be kind and welcoming to her. Now Miss Archer if you would please?" His voice was kind and gentle but everyone was quiet as I stepped up the stairs and sat on a very old and splintered stool, as soon as the hat was on my head he started speaking _Miss Archer hm? Where to put you dear? Hmm lots of courage I see… not too shabby of a mind either, oh such a clever girl…Such loyalty, you would die for the people you love I see, completely selfless. But your rage, such uncontrollable rage, you might have really killed that boy if they hadn't of restrained you. Divination huh? Hm I sense you are destined for greatness… Perhaps Gryffindor would suit you? No Gryffindor would play up your rage, as would Slytherin. How about Ravenclaw? You're quite intelligent, and they are very docile, with an inclination to follow rules. No no that won't do, after all you have a complete disregard for rules and self-preservation. Better be…_

"HUFFLEPUFF!" the hat cried at last, suddenly the table on the right wall erupted with cheers. I slid off the stool and mosied over there taking a seat in between two girls who looked quite friendly.

"Hello Nerrisa! My name is Corrine Lore! The girl on your left is Tami Fairchild! Welcome to Hufflepuff!" The girl gave me a dazzling smile, she had hazel eyes and brown hair, which was long and somewhat wavy. The other girl, Tami, was the opposite she had brown eyes and pin straight red hair. I gave them a smile.

"Please just call me Rizz, it's very nice to meet you. So can you tell me a little bit about this place?" I asked hopefully.

"Of course! Let's start with the teachers! On the end on the far side of the hall is Professor Slughorn! He teaches potions, and he also is in charge of the slug club, which is for the best students, people he thinks are gonna make it big. He's also Head of Slytherin house, you may want to steer clear of them, some of them are alright but most of them are downright gits. And the next to them is Professor Dixto, He teaches Divination. Very nice man he is! Then it's Professor GrubblyPlank, she teaches Care of Magical Creatures. Kind of Sarcastic but knows what she's doing. Then it's Professor McGonagall, She teaches Transfiguration, very strict but also kind. She's head of Gryffindor House, their alright but you may want to steer clear of the Marauders, they might prank you."

"The who?" I asked suddenly, I definitely didn't need that shit.

"The Marauders, um, that's them over there." She pointed over to the table and I followed her finger until my eyes landed on the grinning faces of Sirius, James, Remus and Peter. Sirius was waving enthusiastically. Suddenly my worries vanished and I waved back.

"Oh don't worry I already met them on the train! They won't prank me! Were friends! I think…" My voice was hopeful but I could see on Corrine and Tami's faces that they were worried.

"Well ok, if you're sure but just so you know, they can be pretty big bullies and downright cruel, they have been in a feud with a slytherin, his name is Severus Snape, and one time they hung him in the air and took off his trousers and then they dumped him in the lake. So just be careful ok?" Her voice was low and I could tell it was the truth, but how? How could those nice guys be so mean? And why?

"Yeah I'll defiantly be careful… thanks for the heads up." I was a bit sad now, turns out my new friends were actually complete assholes.

"No problem! Anyway after McGonagall is the Headmaster, Albus Dumbledore. He's really nice, a little off sometimes but very nice! Then next him is Professor Flitwick, he teaches charms and is the Head of Ravenclaw House, their ok, really smart! Next to him is Professor Sprout she is Hufflepuffs Head of House! She's very nice, she teaches Herbology! And then the man next to her is our new Defense against the Dark Arts teacher, Professor Val."

"New? What happened to the last one?" I asked curiously.

"Well no one really knows, people say that position is cursed, we have never had someone last more than a year in that position. It's kind of weird." Tami explained softly, her voice was soft but high, like little church bells. My stomach dropped…cursed? That positions? Of all the positions…

"Who do they think cursed it?" I asked quietly.

"No one really knows, it's just a rumor after all." Corrine laughed, I laughed with her but it was bugging me. Time to do a little bit of homework, I thought with a smirk. We continued to watch the sorting until Dumbledore stood up and gave some speech about rules and what not, but I wasn't listening, until all of the sudden food popped up in front of me. That got my attention quickly! Oh look mashed potatoes! I stacked my plate up with all the food even remotely near me, I was in the middle of swallowing my potatoes when Corrine spoke again. "People are saying you're from the pureblooded Archer family, the ones with all the seers and defensive magic specialists, is that true?" she asked with curiosity.

"Yeah that's right why?" I asked before shoveling in corn and more mashed potatoes.

"Well does that mean you're a seer? And I bet that means you're really good at defensive spells!" She asked while wiping her mouth with her napkin.

"I guess it's possible for me to be a seer but I sincerely doubt it! I mean I can sense auras and shit but I haven't had a vision since I was like eleven and even then it was like what I was gonna have for dinner the next day or something. My parents just chalked it up to accidental magic! And yeah I'm pretty good with defensive spells but my best class is charms." I said with a shrug before moving onto a particularly delicious looking pot roast chunk that I had on my plate.

"Oh wow you can sense auras!? Oh tell me about mine!" She squealed excitedly.

"Alright give me your hand." She complied immediately. As soon as I grasped her hand I was assaulted with an onslaught of different shades of orange. She projected loyalty, courage, and just a little bit of anxiety, she has trouble believing in herself… "Your aura is a couple different shades of orange, your courageous and loyal, but you have trouble believing yourself to be worthy of what you have." I said the last part as quiet as I could and her eyes widened in shock and her mouth dropped open, but as soon as it happened it was gone and I was being squeezed in one the tightest hugs I had ever been in.

"Oh wow you really can do it! That's amazing! I can't believe you could tell about that from just touching my hand!" She released me and flipped her hair to the side before gripping my hand again. "I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship!" She said with a very determined look in her eyes. I smirked at her and Tami who were currently grinning like maniacs. Well mom, how do you like me now? I just made two friends in the span of half an hour. Maybe this won't be so bad. I grinned to myself as Corrine started chatting at both Tami and I, we had dessert, which was amazing. And then were dismissed for bed, Corrine and Tami dragged me down a couple flights of stairs until we were just below ground level. We passed by a painting with some fruit on our way and they quickly explained that it was the kitchens and in order to enter "You have to tickle the pear!" to which I decided I would investigate it later. Until finally we stopped next to some barrels and Corrine turned to me. "This is the entrance to our common room, none of the other houses are allowed in here, we also have a defensive mechanism should you do this wrong so pay real good attention! No password is required. Instead, you must tap the barrel two from the bottom, middle of the second row, in the rhythm of 'Helga Hufflepuff', then the lid will swing open, exposing a passageway that will lead to the basement when crawled through. Our common room is in the basement, but don't worry its very cozy!" I watched Corrine knock on the barrels before the one laying on its side swung open and she crawled through followed by Tami and then me. As soon as I crawled through I was amazed, there were copper lamps and lights everywhere, filling up the room with a warm glow. There were plush couches and chairs all over the place along with the biggest fire place I had ever seen. I looked around and found there were plants everywhere, ferns, flowers, some sort of vines on the walls, and a couple different trees littered around the room making it look like a green house. For a moment I imagined I was home, laying on the beach in the sun. There were circular windows and atop the fire place was a giant mantle of a badger on it and above that was a painting who I could only assume was Helga Hufflepuff, I gave the painting a shy nod and she smiled back and gave me a wave.

"This is the most amazing thing I have ever seen, we get to live here?" I asked as I turned to Corrine and Tami, they were smiling and nodding.

"Professor Sprout is the head of house and enjoys teaching us about Herbology, she also believes it's a stress relief so sometimes during exam week she comes to visit and brings us cool plants, last year they were flowers that danced!" Tami said excitedly. Corrine smiled at me.

"Herbology is Tami's favorite class!" She said giggling a little bit.

"So wait what happens when you do the barrel thing wrong?" I asked curiously.

"Oh you get doused in vinegar and then have to wait for the next hufflepuff to come help you get in!" Corrine said while smirking. Well I guess I'm never gonna get that wrong!

"So where do we sleep?" I asked and they both smirked and led to a door on the right side of the common room and walk into it to find a well-lit tunnel with a bunch or different doors on the sides of it.

"Our room is the 6th door on the left! Come on!" I followed them down the hall and into our room, it had a total of 3 beds. It had the warm glow that common room had and the beds had warm looking patchwork quilts on them, it looked like the most comfortable bed in the whole world.

"Why are there only three beds? Aren't there other 6th year girl Hufflepuffs?" I wondered aloud.

"Nope it's just us! And you now! Is that yours?" Corrine asked in awe. I turned to look at what she was talking about and saw Fiori sitting on my bed watching us lazily.

"Oh yeah that's Fiori! She's my Kneazle!" I explained as I sat on my bed and stroked her gently. The rest of the night was spent unpacking and giggling. We all told stories of home and of our years at school, talking about our favorite food, boys, classes and just everything in general. Right before bed I took out some parchment, ink and a quill.

_**Dear Mum and Dad,**_

_**I kept myself out of trouble so far, I made two friends. Corrine Lore and Tami Fairchild, they seem very nice and are in the same house as me, they are also my only dorm mates. Oh by the way I was sorted into Hufflepuff. But I do have a question, they said that people say the position for defense against the dark arts position is cursed, no one has been in that position for more than a year since they have been here and before that even. I was just curious if you could tell me anything about it. Tomorrow I start classes. Wish me luck!**_

_**All the Love in the world,**_

_**Rizz**_

I glanced out the window unsurprised at seeing the family owl, Kelsey. "Take this mum and dad Kelsey." I said as I let her in and strapped the letter to her, she gave a small hoot and was gone. I sighed and curled up in bed. Things were going well, hopefully it would stay that way.


End file.
